"This is a great little instrument in an unusual role. While it used to monitor the health of mouse models, it is primarily used to determine cell concentration prior to immunological staining for flow cytometry. It is much faster and more accurate than a manual haemocytometer count, easy to use cheap.
It’s one drawback is, it is difficult to extract data from the instrument, it is easiest done manually (write the relevant data on paper), if you have an old enough printer (SCSI) it can print the data, but some newer printers (SCSI) corrupt the printed file.
Long term I would like to move to a 5Diff instrument, this would give me more relevant information in the context of a translational research institute, but it would also mean I could plug it into my booking system and extracting results would be much improved (excel/printing/etc).
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"We have had this analyzer for over 12 years and it is still chugging along not missing a beat! I have never had such a reliable machine! We have very little service on it. It is very user friendly and doesn't even require much maintenance. This is great because we are a busy little POL and work alone with time constraints. I would definitely recommend this!"

"We run about 50 CBCs (complete blood counts) a day. I have had my Beckman for 7 years and it has run over 70,000 samples. Needless to say it is a little work horse that gives me few problems. I would gladly recommend this machine to anyone in the market for a new CBC machine."

"After using this machine for the first time I was thrilled with the ease of use for it. It is a machine that can be programmed and used without a lot of training beforehand. As a student it was easy to be able to understand what I was taught and was able to use the COULTER without confusion."

"Little training required for use. Can be combined with a printer and computer for data transfer."

Review date: 06 Jun 2005 | COULTER® Ac·T diff™ Analyzer

First-rate Performance and Value.

Ac·T diff is an affordable, compact system that features the power of Beckman Coulter’s proven histogram differential technology. Ideal for labs performing up to 50 CBCs a day, the Ac·T diff is a popular choice for the low-volume needs of today’s physician office labs and smaller laboratories.